Page 36 of The Scottish Duke
“How very kind of you.”
He ignored her sarcasm. “In addition, my mother thinks highly of you, as does Mrs.McDermott.”
“While I am grateful for such a character reference, I really don’t care what you think of me.”
“You can’t return to Wittan Village.”
Her eyes narrowed and her lips thinned. She glared at him as if he were the most loathsome creature she’d ever seen.
“How will you support your child?”
“That is none of your concern.”
“Come to Blackhall,” he said. “There’s a small cottage on the grounds that used to belong to the gamekeeper. I’ll have it prepared for you. You can live there with your child. All I ask is to be able to visit from time to time. You’ll be given an allowance and the child will be educated as befits his station in life.”
“As what, a bastard?”
“No,” he said stiffly. “As my child.” When she didn’t respond, he said, “I’m offering you a home, MissGordon.”
“Everyone will know.”
“Everyone knows now. Or do you think you’re immune to gossip? The minute my mother read that letter, word spread.”
She turned away, staring out at the view of the icy scenery.
What the hell was she thinking?
“If you go anywhere else, the same thing will happen. Maybe not right away, but eventually. You’ll be isolated, cut off from others by condemnation. That won’t happen at Blackhall.”
She glanced at him. “So you’ll command people to be pleasant to me, is that it? You’ll dictate how they feel, what they say?”
“No. They’ll respect you because you’re a family guest.”
She turned back to the window.
What else could he say to convince her? Blackhall was not unlike a village, but at least he could control how she was treated there. He couldn’t do anything in another village.
“What would your father want?” he asked, searching for something to say. “What would he want you to do?”
“You don’t know my father. He didn’t care about what other people said.”
“But he’d never been unmarried and pregnant, had he? Don’t be stupid and stubborn.”
“Don’t be ducal and despicable.”
He considered her for a moment. He had handled the whole matter clumsily. He needed to be more charming and perhaps more honest.
“I came to Wittan to tell you that I believe the child you carry is mine. I’m willing to provide for you. I’ve settled an amount of money on you to be administered by my solicitor. However, that does not make your situation any easier. As I said before, even if you go and live in another village, you’re bound to be found out eventually and treated exactly the same. Come and live at Blackhall. You won’t face that kind of intolerance.”
“I won’t be your mistress,” she said.
One of his eyebrows arched upward. “Not in the condition you are, surely.”
“My declaration is hardly amusing,” she said.
“Amusing? God forbid,” he said. “This is the least amusing situation I’ve ever found myself in.”
“If I return to Blackhall you must let people know.”
